The Sibley guide to birds

"David Allen Sibley, America's most gifted contemporary painter of birds, is the author and illustrator of this comprehensive guide. His beautifully detailed illustrations -- more than 6,600 in all -- and descriptions of 810 species and 350 regional populations will enrich every birder's experience. The Sibley Guide's innovative design makes it entirely user-friendly. The illustrations are arranged to facilitate comparison, yet still capture the unique character of each species ... With The Sibley Guide to Birds, the National Audubon Society makes the art and expertise of David Sibley available to the world in a comprehensive, handsome, easy-to-use volume that will be the indispensable identification guide every birder must own."--Jacket.

"A Chanticleer Press edition"--Page opposite title page.

"A Borzoi Book."

Includes indexes.

Preface -- Acknowledgments -- Introduction. Classification of birds -- Learning to identify birds -- Variation in appearance -- Learning songs and calls -- Finding rare birds -- Ethics -- Extinct species -- Bird topography. Parts of a passerine -- Head feathers -- Body feathers -- Wing feathers -- Parts of a shorebird -- Parts of a duck -- Parts of a gull -- Molt and plumage -- North American birds species accounts. Loons -- Grebes -- Albatrosses, petrels, and shearwaters -- Storm-petrels -- Pelecaniformes -- Wading birds -- Swans, geese, and ducks -- Diurnal raptors -- Upland game birds -- Gruiformes -- Shorebirds -- Jaegers and Skuas -- Gulls, terns, and skimmers -- Alcids -- Pigeons and doves -- Parrots and theor allies -- Cuckoos and their allies -- Owls -- Goatsuckers and swifts -- Hummingbirds -- Trogons -- Kingfishers -- Woodpeckers -- Tyrant flycatchers -- Shrikes and vireos -- Jays, crows, and their allies -- Larks, Swallows -- Chickadees and their allies -- Nutchhatches and creepers -- Wrens -- Old world warblers, thrushes, and their allies -- Miminds -- Starlings and mynas -- Wagtails and pipits -- Silky-flycatchers and Bulbuls -- Waxwings -- Wood-warblers -- Tanagers, …